Arhitectura peisagera: Informatii, Critica si Idei.

the tree lovers, `90s

Somewhere in the US, a bunch of youth started asking themselves some questions about what`s going on in their surroundings. The Warner Creek case is one of local awakening and forest saving initiatives, that mirrored similar issues allover the country. The outcome was not only multiple uprisings of peaceful protesters but actually local government passing a bill to protect what is left of the forest.

The lessons learn in this example is that there is no easy game. A fight always comes with struggle and a struggle always comes with “don`t give up”. Now, there are some levels of discussion.

One: government – there will be always politics involved, and where there are politics there is lobbying, and where is lobbying someones`s gotta have an advantage. We the people have to ensure that we have a decent leadership that represents us. Therefore, we should know who is the lead. We the people have to make sure that the law is adequately addressed. Therefore, we should know the law. We the people have to know who is taking decisions and how this affects local action. Therefore, we should know where we are.

Two: local level games – who are the players and what is the bid? This is not easy because there is usually high discrepancy between commitment to sustainability/ climate action (global and local level) and its translation in vernacular language, in actions, in impacts. And here`s where everyone is an expert in “how to” but no one really cares anymore why we need nature in livelihood`s development. Top of mind example is urban development, in particular the example of Timisoara, beautiful Romanian city where the Mayor just interdicted use of bicycle in the city center claiming that we live in the era of autovehicles..and by the time urban flying is allowed, we shall use cars.

Three: who actually cares, does not only takes a stand but takes a name, an image. But as showed in the documentary, people who actually unite for a cause, have different purpose themselves as well as different focus. The gender discussion for instance, it is something worth talking about, in any form of grouping, including environmental movements. It must be some sort of teamwork, is it?

” For us in the Warner Creek Campaign wasn`t just about forests anymore. We were starting to look like how our whole society was organized, the way we as individuals were related to the land and were related to each other. And in that time, the Warner Creek Campaign, a lot of women were looking at the way men and women are raised differently in a society in a way that mean are afforded a privilege many women aren`t afforded. We live in a patriarchal society we`re all conditioned to act that way. Is true, men wanted to cut down the forest, men were the ones profiting from it. It was men in the white house and mostly men in the congress that made these laws, and when we broke those laws there were mostly men that took us away to jail. But this wasn’t true only in the mainstream society, in our own campaign, the positions of men and women were quite often different, and women didn`t like it and we got to fight against it. Men were mostly the ones holding the video cameras, and men were mostly those who stood in front of them and talked, and every single meeting that we had, every single action that we planned and carried out, there were always issues of a male dominance that had to be looked at. And as much as they were trying to make us look at it, a lot of men had a hard time focusing on that issue. There was a lot of pain and argument in the camp, there was always the excuse on men side that we gotta look at the forest and address that issue now.”

And here below some inspiring quotes, as you may follow the short docu attached:

“People living according to what is legal and what is illegal instead of what is right and what is wrong.”

“We are killing mother Earth, Is me that’s doing it, is you that’s doing it. We`re doing it because our consumptive lifestyles, because we`ve been taught that the appropriate way to live is to define your personality and who you are by the acquisition of things that you have, so you have a real hard time knowing any other way to live than acquiring things, and then finding yourself buy more more more. The first thing we need to do is to admit it. With each action that you take, you ask yourself: what are the consequences of what I`m doing and is what I`m doing sustainable? If everybody on the planet had the opportunities that I have, and they are exercised as opportunities that I`m exercising them, can we sustain that on to future generations? If the answer is no, then you`re in a tough place, because you gave to grief as you go through your actions every day. Second thing we have to do is non-participation in this consumerism society. A re-definition of culture: what we wear, what we eat, where we live, how we transport ourselves. We need a complete re-definition of this culture.”

“We are living in a very important time right now. We have to reconnect with nature and nature within us. Air, water, fire, these are the gifts that the creator has given us. It is important that you are here, and what are you doing here. It is important that you stay strong, and no matter what they do to you physically, you stay strong spiritually.”